development

The fourth session of the City of South Lake Tahoe’s Citizens Academy graduated during Tuesday’s city council meeting.

The Spring 2014 academy was held from April 9-May 21, 2014 and consisted of 13 attendees including: Douglas Bolton, Tom Burkart, Ian Caruth, Tobias Devor, Janill Gilbert, Misty Johansen, Jen Menzel, Jo Mutz, Lannette Rangel, Jonathan Schank, Leslie Schultz, Brandon Swartz, and Judy Weber.

The Draft Tahoe Valley Area Plan and accompanying documents were released Wednesday, paving the way for finalization after agency and public review and upcoming comment periods. After community meetings and months of review and planning, the "Town Center" concept has been adopted along with "Greenbelt" portions.

The plan reflects the City of South Lake Tahoe's effort to rekindle the economic vitality and spirit of the Tahoe Valley Community. The plan outlines the community's strategy for resurrection.

For every day a student misses school it costs the Lake Tahoe Unified School District about $60 in lost revenue. With a budget centered around an average attendance of 95%, every time the figures dip below the average, it is a concern not only for the student's learning experience, but also for an already tight budget.

The facts are startling, and, for lack of a better work, sobering. Studies show that 11% of all alcohol consumed in the U.S. is done so by youth aged 11 to 20, below the legal drinking age.

Alcohol is the most commonly used and abused drug among youth in the United States, more than tobacco and illicit drugs according to the Center for Disease Control, and is responsible for more than 4,300 annual deaths among underage youth.

The 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that among high school students, during the past 30 days:

39% drank some amount of alcohol.
22% binge drank.

South Tahoe Now sent a questionnaire out to all of the candidates for Douglas County Sheriff. We will be posting them in the order received. This is the second of three to be received.

1. What do you see as the biggest challenge facing the Douglas County Sheriff’s Department?

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit is seeking public input on a proposal to remove the Incline Lake dam and restore the area impacted by it. The Forest Service purchased the 777-acre Incline Lake parcel, located off State Route 431 in Washoe County, Nev., on July 29, 2008, for its recreational, scenic and natural resource values. During the acquisition process, a site investigation and assessment determined that the Incline Lake dam and spillway do not meet federal, state or local standards for a high-hazard dam (designated as such due to downstream development).

PARK CITY, UT (May 7) – Olympic gold medalists Ted Ligety (Park City, UT), Mikaela Shiffrin (Eagle-Vail, CO), Bode Miller (Franconia, NH), Lindsey Vonn (Vail, CO) and Julia Mancuso (Squaw Valley, CA) are among the 40 athletes nominated to the 2015 U.S. Alpine Ski Team. The team will formally named in the fall during Nature Valley First Tracks at Copper Mountain, CO – home of the U.S. Ski Team Speed Center.

HIGHLIGHTS
Fourty athletes have been nominated to the 2015 U.S. Alpine Ski Team.

Living in a forest gives great benefits, but it also carries with it the risk of forest fires.

A Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) for South Lake Tahoe is being developed jointly by the South Lake Tahoe Fire Department and Lake Valley Fire Protection District.

The community is being asked to complete a survey which will help the agencies prepare the CWPP. This will enable the creation of a plan on how the south shore will reduce it's risk of wildfire by identifying strategic sites and methods for fuel reduction projects.

The Food Bank of El Dorado County was in South Lake Tahoe on Wednesday to accomplish two things: Distribute emergency food supplies to locals in need, and to hold a meeting with South Lake Tahoe agencies who assist people living with hunger.

In 2013, the El Dorado County Food Bank distributed 1.8 million pounds of food to county residents with a value of $3,000,000. The agency is not county funded and gets their food from donations, private donors, growers, businesses and the USDA.

All organizations that assist clients who are living with hunger, from children to the elderly are invited to attend the Food Bank of El Dorado County's Hunger Response Network Meeting. The meeting will be at the American Legion Hall at 2748 Lake Tahoe Blvd from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.

The need for food assistance is growing in the community and the Food Bank wants to collaborate with local organizations to conduct a South lake Tahoe focused hunger to truly understand the community’s needs and the best ways to allocate the Food Bank’s resources in Tahoe based on these results.

The El Dorado County Food Bank will be in South Lake Tahoe to distribute emergency supplemental groceries to those who need it most on Wednesday, April 23 from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.

The mobile pantry will be in the parking lot of the American Legion Hall at 2748 Lake Tahoe Blvd to help struggling families make ends meet. There will be one allocation per household.

The League to Save Lake Tahoe is inviting the public to its first Pipe Keepers Public Forum on April 17 at the Blue Angel Café in South Lake Tahoe, featuring five regional experts who will discuss stormwater problems and solutions in the Tahoe Basin. The event will feature free food and drinks, a free raffle, expert presentations and a question and answer session.

Retirement?!? What young person even wants to hear the word, much less think about putting away money for it?

But guess what? Any job you get today is very unlikely to have a pension, and many don't even come with benefits anymore like 401k's or other savings plans. So that means you're on your own when it comes time to stop working.

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A record-breaking 100 businesses will participate in the 2014 Business EXPO –“Tahoe South in ACTION” this Friday, March 28. The event begins at 4:30pm and continues until 8:30pm in Harrah’s Lake Tahoe Convention Center. It will highlight South Shore businesses’ goods and services to an anticipated crowd of 1,200 attendees.

The following vendors will exhibit:

A Hand at Home
Acker RV Rentals
Alpine Smith Snow Removal and Driveway Sealing
American Legion Post 795
Bank of the West
Barton Memorial Hospital
Beach Hut Deli
Beach Retreat and Lodge Tahoe

Residents of Meyers and the surrounding South Lake Tahoe community have been actively participating in what is called the "Meyers Area Plan." During the last community meeting on February 26 several concerned citizens spoke about what they wanted, and didn't want, to see their in their town.

El Dorado County officials took the numerous public comments made both at the meeting and on-line and have created potential revisions to the Draft Meyers Area Plan.

A group of volunteers from Lake Tahoe Community College donated their time to Bread and Broth recently, helping to prepare and serve a hot meal to hungry locals as part of the Adopt a Day of Nutrition program. Four LTCC staffers donned aprons and kitchen gloves to help prepare and serve food, and assist with the cleanup.

With support from California Proposition 84 stormwater grant funds, the Tahoe Resource Conservation District (Tahoe RCD) is leading the effort to measure pollutants in urban runoff at Lake Tahoe to help evaluate the combined effectiveness of pollutant control measures and consistently track and report monitoring findings. This effort, known as the Regional Storm Water Monitoring Program (RSWMP) is a collaborative program supported by regulatory agencies, local government representatives, and scientists in the Lake Tahoe region.

Information was circulating that Meyers was going to be taken over by large parking garages and other unwanted development including a Athlete's Village or Basecamp type feature, much of what was created by a now buried Catalyst Plan. "The Catalyst Project is dead," El Dorado County Supervisor Norma Santiago told the packed house at the California Conservation Corp (CCC) building in Meyers on Wednesday night.

The following is an opinion article and does not necessarily reflect the views of South Tahoe Now:

The Lake Tahoe Community College District was voted into existence 40 years ago, on March 5, 1974. The College has big plans to celebrate its anniversary with a number of fun and educational events this year. Members of the media, the community, and college staff and faculty are all welcome to attend a press conference on Wednesday, March 5th at 11 a.m. to hear the College’s plans to mark its 40th year, and to honor its history. The conference will be held at the Econo Lodge at 2659 Lake Tahoe Boulevard, where the College first offered classes and welcomed its first students.

On Feb. 6 at 6:30 pm, a meeting will be held at the Lake Valley Fire Department to discuss the recent unveiling of the Catalyst Project, which includes a multi-story, multi-acre resort and parking garage in Meyers. The draft TRPA and El Dorado County 2014 Community Plan (“Area Plan”) for Meyers, which currently includes development incentives favoring the large project, will also be discussed. This meeting is not sponsored by any agency, and Meyers residents are encouraged to come with questions.

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It's tax season; be on top of your game with tips and insight from Michelle Larsen, a local financial guru from David & Johnson, Ltd. Whether you're an individual working to get the best return possible, or a small business owner navigating this, ahem, interesting time of the year, this TRYP workshop is for YOU!

Professional Development Workshops are FREE for members and just $10 for non-members. Bring your friends and co-workers for this important topic you won't want to miss.

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PLACERVILLE, CA - El Dorado Arts Council (EDAC) announced today that Kim Wyatt, publisher of Bona Fide Books, was appointed to the nonprofit arts organization’s board of directors.

“We are excited to have Kim Wyatt join our board as EDAC prepares to launch exciting initiatives in 2014,” says Dan Cattone, EDAC board president. “The support and nurturing of the South Lake Tahoe art community is critical to our mission of ‘More Art in More Places.’ Kim will help us energize that effort and insure that EDAC brings relevant support and value to the South Lake Tahoe art community.”

It's the beginning of a new year and it's time to get organized with your career. Join the Tahoe Regional Young Professionals for this month's professional development workshop, "New Year, New Resume." TRYP's own Megan Arneson, a business coach and strategist, will be presenting a new approach on what to put on your resume, and how to structure it. Learn essentials for customizing your resume and cover letter to fit any job description and to optimize them for online search.

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